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    HomeNehanda GuardianIt’s Simba Bhora

    It’s Simba Bhora

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    Beatrice Imbayago

    A 1- 0 win against Arenel Movers on Wednesday at Luveve Stadium, in Bulawayo, hoisted Simba Bhora into the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League as the 2024 champions, sending waves of celebrations in their home town, Shamva, and Mashonaland Central Province.

    Captain Walter Musona, the Zimbabwe national team player scored the all-important goal in the 10th minute, to transport the Simba boys safely to the Promised Land in a history-making  decider.

    Victory at Luveve Stadium is historic because this is the first time that a team from Mashonalnd Central Province has claimed the league championship and done so in its second season in top flight soccer in the country. That is the scale of the importance of the team’s achievement.

    And it was sweet victory for head coach, Tonderayi Ndiraya, who after his inglorious departure from Dynamos Football Club, who must have loved an irresistible,” if you could see me now” reminder to the club and its followers.

    But back to the streets of Shamva and parts of the province it was carnival time. In interviews with Nehanda Guardian soon after the match on Wednesday, Simba Bhora fans were in dreamland as they danced, ululated and blew their vuvuzelas in the dusty streets of Shamva in celebration of the team winning the league title.

    The team’s supporters’ chairman, Noah Ndombo, was ecstatic adding that the Simba boys had made history for themselves as no other team from the province had won the league title after a few year in top flight soccer.

    “Tinozvipembedza panhoroondo yemunyika medu hapana chikwata chakangoita makore maviri nekutora mukombe. Tadadisa nyika yose, mukombe mukuru waakuuya kumusha we goridhe, Shamva yoweeeee!” he said doing a samba dance in jubilation.

    Ndombo said team work among the players, supporters and the administration contributed to the victorious win by the Simba boys.

    “Simba Bhora yadadisa zvikuru.  Mbiri yose ndinoiisa kuvatambi vachitungamirirwa naCaptain Walter Musona. Vakomana varwa sembumba. Vati dadisa nokuti ndiwo mutambo watanga takataririra nemeso matsvuku, kuti tiite maChampions. Ndoda kutenda zvikuru coach Ndiraya nevatevedzeri vake. Zvakanga zvakaoma gore rino asi maratidza kuti ‘Go Buju Go’ inhamba 1,” he said breathlessly.

    Simba Bhora team manager Paul Ndombo said despite the disparaging attitude from some people, the team was not demotivated, instead that only motivated the players, who were determined to prove themselves and that they had done so emphatically, proving their mettle.

    “Vanhu vaidzikisira team vachiti ndeyekumusha, but neshungu tatora mukombe. Tauya nawo kumusha mukombe, ende tiri kufara chose,” he said.

    Caesar Kufandiko, the marketing manager of the team, said although they were left with two more games to play, those were ceremonious as their lead at 66 points was unassailable. His declaration was informed by the fact that second placed FC Platinum are on 57 points after playing Bulawayo Chiefs at home, who they beat. Third-placed are Ngezi Platinum, who settled for a 1-1 draw with Chicken Inn.

    “We are now the Champions newin yanhasi, although tichine two games to play against FC Platinum and ZPC Kariba, league yobva yapera,” said Kufandiko.

    Amid a cacophony of vuvuzelas, Farirai Ndige a self-declared die-hard Simba Bhora fan, said the win for the Simba boys was a great honour for the province from a sporting perspective.

    “Haa! Tafara zvisingaite, Simba Bhora yatiisawo pa map seprovince. Vanhu vaakutozivawo kuti kune team inobva kuno ku Mashonaland Central inotamba bhora zvisingaite. We are so happy the boys made us proud,” he said.

    Going into the game, Simba Bhora only needed one point to secure the title, but walloped Arenel Movers to claim all the three points on offer giving them a nine-point lead on the log.

    The Shamva-based team meant business from the outset because it has been in the premiership for only two years and has thus broken the record of taking the title with in a short space of time.

    Simba Bhora becomes the second team to put the province on the map after Mwana Africa, which did so in 2007.

    Head coach, Tonderai Ndiraya, during a post-match briefing said: “We are very excited as a club to have won the championship. We are excited for what we have done throughout the season. We give credit to our management, the president himself, Simbarashe Ndoro, the board, the executive committee, the technical team, the secretariat and the players.

    “The players were the ones doing the job and our supporters have always been there for us and we have done this together, so this championship is for the entire province.”

    New Ziana

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